


Just A Small Town Boy

by hapakitsune



Category: American Idol RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, BDSM, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-07-27
Updated: 2010-07-27
Packaged: 2018-03-29 20:48:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3910135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hapakitsune/pseuds/hapakitsune
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kris Allen is just trying to get through his senior year of high school. He doesn't need some gorgeous newcomer to come along and sweep him off his feet - only, Adam Lambert is a force that cannot be resisted. Add in a high school rivalry and an over-the-top talent show, mix well, and let the fireworks begin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just A Small Town Boy

**Author's Note:**

> reposting from LJ, this is from 2010!! haha enjoy suckers who clicked on this

Megan accosts Kris after first period and says, “There’s a new kid!” She sounds unusually excited by something so banal, her eyes wide and voice breathless.

“Really?” Kris asks dryly, gently pulling his arm out of her grasp. “And you felt the need to tell me this _why_?”

“His name is Adam,” Megan continues, as though Kris hadn’t spoken. “He’s _so cool_. Even Brad thinks so.”

Brad is just about the pickiest bastard alive, so that’s actually kind of impressive. But then, Brad hangs out with the theatre kids – Cassidy, Katie Kay, Alisan, Drake, Tommy – so if Brad likes the new kid, the new kid will probably end up as one of Them. (There is kind of a petty rivalry between the theatre kids and the choir kids. Choir kids who join theatre, even for just one production, end up being ostracized by both groups, and vice versa. It’s actually kind of sad.)

“Great,” Kris says, opening his locker and rummaging through it. “That’s super exciting.”

“You’ve been kind of a brat since you and Katy broke up,” Megan accuses him and Kris slams his locker shut a little harder than necessary.

“Look, we’re still best friends,” he says, waving his finger in Megan’s face. “I wish everyone would stop acting like we’re both heartbroken!”

(Katy had expressed a similar sense of annoyance the previous day when they had shared an order of Animal-Style fries from In & Out. “All the girls at school are treating me like I’m made of glass,” she had said, rolling her eyes. “And half the guys are trying to subtly suggest that they can be my rebound. Megan and Lil told me that they would beat you up if I wanted them to. ”

Kris had hummed in sympathy and stolen a sip of her shake.)

“Whatever,” Megan says dismissively. “But I’m telling you, this new kid is something special.”  


  
*****

  
By the time third period rolls around, Kris has heard so much about the new kid that he actually wants to scream. Katy, sitting next to him, rolls her eyes when she hears Anoop say something like, "He has _blue hair_!"

"I don't get it," she confesses in an undertone to Kris. "What's so special about this new kid?"

Allison, on Katy's other side, assures her, "You'll see when you meet him."

"He's a freak," says that douchebag Christopher Cuomo, turning around to look at Kris. "Total fag."

"Hey," Kris says, feeling a little uncomfortable. "Don't you think that's a little rude?"

"Yeah, come on," Katy says, widening her eyes at him. "Don't be a jerk."

Christopher deflates a little because he has a totally obvious and transparent crush on Katy, and turns back around as Mr. Cowell comes in, scowling at all of them. Kris is kind of intimidated by Mr. Cowell; he has him for two classes – music theory and choir – and he's always gotten the distinct impression that Mr. Cowell doesn't like him all that much.

The bell rings and Mr. Cowell calls the class to attention by glaring all of them into silence. He opens his mouth, about to speak, when suddenly the door to classroom is thrown open and a tall guy with blue-streaked hair comes in.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" the guy says – he must be the new kid, Adam – and he closes the door before stepping into the classroom. He is wearing a pair of skintight jeans and a shirt that declares him to be "The Girl Katy Perry Kissed!" He beams at the class, looking inordinately excited.

"Find a seat, Mr. Lambert," Mr. Cowell says, sounding bored, and Adam heads back to where Kris is, plopping into the empty seat to Kris's left. He smiles at Kris brightly and Kris raises his hand in a cautious wave. Adam looks delighted.

"Hi," he says in a stage whisper. "I'm Adam."

“Mr. Lambert!” Mr. Cowell barks, his accent becoming even more pronounced. “If you cannot be punctual, you can at least be _silent_.”

“Sorry, Mr. Cowell,” Adam replies with a wide, disarming grin. Mr. Cowell deflates somewhat and nodded tersely before turning to the board to explain counterpoint. Kris hunches over his notebook and tries not to get distracted by the new kid because man, Allison and Megan and Anoop and everyone else hadn’t been lying. Adam really is something else.  


  
*****

  
“Hey, hey, wait,” Kris hears from behind him as he leaves class. He turns to see Adam hurrying after him. “I never got your name.”

Kris pauses, a little taken aback, and then says, “I’m Kris.”

“Hi, Kris,” Adam says happily, beaming widely. “It’s nice to meet you. I was a little bitter about having to move to this place in the middle of nowhere, but if all the boys are as cute as you, I don’t know if I mind as much!”

“Hey,” Kris says feelingly. “This middle of nowhere place is my hometown.”

“Oh, sorry. I totally understand hometown pride.” Adam slaps his chest and says, “Every time Woody Allen shits on Los Angeles in a film, I get pissy.”

“You’re from LA?” Kris asks wistfully. “I’ve always wanted to go.”

“It’s a pretty fun city,” Adam says, smiling. “But I’m beginning to warm up to this place.” He gives Kris a little wink and smile that makes his meaning very clear indeed. Kris mumbles an excuse and hurries away.

Except then Adam is in his class right before lunch and he sits next to Kris again. “Look, man, I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable,” he whispers, ignoring the withering glare Ms. Perry is directing at him. “I think I just misread things. You were just being friendly, right?”

“Right,” Kris says softly, not entirely sure if that is true. “But it’s not a big deal.”

“It’s just, the people who were the nicest to me were Brad and Drake,” Adam explains and Kris gets why maybe Adam might have thought – well. Kris is kind of little and wears plaid and some people say that there is a kind of basic resemblance between him, Brad, and Drake – something about the jaw, Katy always says.

“Don’t worry about it,” Kris tells him. “I don’t care.”

“Oh, good,” Adam sighs in relief. He beams at Kris and says, “Thanks for being cool about this.”

“Mr. Lambert!” Ms. Perry calls. “Please be quiet!”

Adam ducks his head and says, “Sorry, Ms. Perry,” in a voice that is so sweet and contrite that Kris is a little startled. Adam catches Kris staring at him in surprise and winks, giving Kris thumbs up. Kris rolls his eyes, but has to cover his mouth to hide a laugh.  


  
*****

  
“So the new kid,” Katy says when Kris sits down next to her at lunch. Scott snorts.

“I don’t get what the big deal is,” he says through a mouthful of salad. Scott has been a health food kick recently, which no one really understands. “He’s just another loud-mouthed drama kid.”

“We don’t know that yet,” Allison says, raising a finger as if her argument will be more compelling because of it. “It’s not too late! One of us could seduce him over to the dark side.”

“Not it,” Matt announces instantly, touching his finger to his nose.

Megan rolls her eyes and says, “Look, it’s gotta be one of the guys, he’s obviously not gonna go for me or Lil.”

“What about me?” Allison pouts.

“Honey, you’re fifteen, that’s illegal,” Lil answers, patting Allison on the back gently. Katy raises her eyebrows, pressing her lips together to hide her smile.

“I actually wasn’t trying to suggest we seduce him to the choir,” Katy explains. (Katy isn’t actually a choir kid, because she really doesn’t sing all that well, but she’s one by proxy because of Kris, and anyway, everyone likes her so they don’t mind that she’s attached herself to their group.) “I was just going to ask Kris about him.”

“Mmm, new boy’s got his eyes on Kris?” Michael says with a shit-eating grin and Danny makes a choked noise. He has to take off his glasses to wipe at his eyes as he coughs. Kris has no sympathy because although he knows Danny means well, Danny is also a little close-minded sometimes. He has been trying, though, which Kris appreciates.

Anoop appears out of nowhere and plops into the seat next to Megan. “New kid is sitting with Brad and company,” he announces. He tries to wrap his arm around Megan’s waist, but she elbows him in the stomach before he can.

“Good riddance,” Scott mutters. Lil pokes him gently.

“Hon, the guy’s a sweetheart. We want him on our side.” Lil glares at Danny. “Right?”

Kris tunes out the ensuing bickering and surreptitiously scans the cafeteria, and sure enough, at the table behind the two Davids are Brad and his crew. Adam is sitting smack-dab between Drake and Brad and even Tommy is looking a little star-struck. Adam looks like he’s telling a story, complete with huge hand gestures and funny facial expressions.

“It’s too late,” Kris says sadly. “He’s crossed over to the Dark Side.”

As one, the table – with the exception of Scott, who doggedly continues eating his salad – turns to look. Lil is the first one to admit defeat, turning back with a sigh.

“Well,” she says, “it was fun to imagine it.”

“I told you,” Scott says smugly, spearing another piece of lettuce and waving it triumphantly. “Nothing special about him at all.”

After lunch, they all go to choir a little downtrodden. Megan helps Scott to the piano while the rest of them slip into place on the risers. Mr. Cowell is flicking through a pile of papers, his perpetual scowl a little more pronounced.

Adam bounces into the room and says, “Hi!” to Mr. Cowell, who frowns at him and says, “Go stand behind Mr. Allen.”

Adam says, “Okay!” and bounds up the risers, squeezing between Anoop and Matt. Danny harrumphs from Kris’s left side and then oomphs when Allison elbows him between the ribs. Adam taps Kris’s shoulder and says happily, “Nice to see you again!”

Kris nods, not wanting to say anything. Adam pokes him in the back gently.

“Is this because I didn’t sit with you at lunch?” Adam asks teasingly and Danny tenses next to Kris, as though he can’t hold it in. Kris debates smacking him to get him to chill out, but then Adam says, “Come on, is it?”

“Yes it is!” Danny snaps and then says, “Ow!” when Kris and Allison simultaneously elbow him in the ribs.

“Oh,” Adam says sadly. “What did I do wrong?”

“You sat with the _drama kids_ ,” Megan hisses from Allison’s other side.

Adam looks around at all of them, noting the team glares. “Oh my god, Kris,” he says happily. “You have a posse! Do they all hate me?”

“You’ve gone over to the Dark Side, Adam,” Kris sighs. “Even though you couldn’t have known better, it’s unacceptable.”

“Man,” Adam complains, “this school has more rules than I thought.”

“Mr. _Lambert_ , please!” Mr. Cowell barks. “Desist talking! We must begin, time is short.”

Adam subsides into a thoughtful silence and Mr. Cowell begins class. Kelly, a senior with an amazing voice, belts out the beginning of the song they’re rehearsing for the winter concert, and class begins.

Adam, it turns out, has a fantastic voice. Like, really fantastic. Mr. Cowell actually gets tears in his eyes when Adam sings. It’s a little creepy, actually, since Kris doesn’t think he has ever seen Mr. Cowell even _smile_ – though rumor has it when Kelly first sang for him, he didn’t stop smiling for a week. (Frankly, that image absolutely terrifies Kris, so he tries not to think about it too much.)

Worse, Adam is unfailingly _nice_ to everyone, telling them they’re great and complimenting Scott’s playing before helping him to the door. Scott grudgingly admits that maybe Adam is kind of cool and Danny squawks, “But the _drama kids_!” in a high-pitched voice.

To be honest, Kris thinks the whole drama-choir rivalry thing is a bit too _West Side Story_ , only stupider and more _Mean Girls_ (and if anyone asks why he knows anything about either of those movies, he _will_ use Katy as an excuse).

“I mean,” he says to Katy when they go out for coffee after school, as they always do, “it’s not like we have a reason to hate them.”

“Most of them are douchebags,” Katy points out.

“Yeah, but so are we, sometimes,” Kris argues. Katy concedes that with a nod of her head. “So why do we hate them?”

“Tradition,” Katy says.

“That’s a stupid reason,” Kris sighs and he puts his chin on his hands. Katy pats his arm comfortingly.

“So do you think you’re going to try out for the talent show this year?” she asks, somewhat out of the blue. Kris almost snorts out his café mocha in surprise.

“Um,” he says, grabbing a napkin as he coughs. “Why?”

“Because you say every year that you’ll try out and you never do.” Katy takes a calm sip of her own black coffee and smiles. “Come on, Kris. You should try out.”

“I won’t win,” Kris sighs. “Look at who has won in the past!”

“What, you think they’re more talented than you?” demands Katy. “You’re just as good as David – _both of them_ ,” she adds when she sees him open his mouth to ask which one. “You’re _better_.”

“Mr. Cowell hates me,” Kris points out, because Mr. Cowell is one of the judges for the talent show and even though technically the students vote, Mr. Cowell’s opinion is significant enough that he could sway a lot of the student population.

“Yes, but Ms. DioGuardi _loves_ you,” Katy points out. Ms. DioGuardi is new to the school and teaches the orchestra. She subbed for Mr. Cowell once and absolutely loved Kris, who she thinks is adorable. “Ms. Abdul said she was the new judge for this year.”

Kris rolls his eyes. “And you trust Ms. Abdul?” he asks dryly, because Ms. Abdul is pretty much the definition of flaky.

“No, but I trust Principal Davis, and he said it was true.” Katy takes a sip of her drink. “Look, Kris. You can’t keep telling yourself that you’re not good enough because it’s not true! You’re really good. Just – promise me you’ll at least try out.”

Kris rolls his eyes. “Okay,” he sighs. “I’ll try out.”

Katy smiles smugly and sits back in her seat. “Good.” She takes a sip of her coffee thoughtfully and says, “I think the new kid has a crush on you.”  


  
*****

  
Adam has apparently made it his mission in life to be friends with Kris.

“Hi!” he says brightly the next day, taking the seat next to Kris in music theory. Katy raises her eyebrows at Kris significantly. (The day before, Kris had pronounced her crazy; why would Adam have a crush on him? There are _so many_ other choices, including ones who are, you know, actually gay. But he’s beginning to think maybe she’s right.) “So I asked Brad about the rivalry and I guess you guys actually take it seriously!”

“Uh,” Kris says. “Yeah, we do.”

“But why?” Adam asks plaintively. “Do you not have musical theatre?”

“We tried that, once,” Kris says wistfully. “My freshman year. It didn’t end well.” It had, in fact, ended with a small fire, shattered light fixtures, two assault charges, and the destruction of a small but very valuable statue that was being used as a prop. “After that, we thought it would be best if we stayed separated.”

Adam’s mouth is hanging open a little and then he blinks, snapping his mouth shut. “My goodness.”

“Lindsay tried to have it both ways,” says Kris, ignoring Katy’s little ‘ha!’ and remark of, “In more ways than one!” “She ended up developing a cocaine habit, dropping out of school, and running off with some British DJ.”

“Wow,” Adam says, eyes wide. “This town is a lot more exciting than I thought it was.”

“You have no idea,” Kris says feelingly. “I haven’t even told you about Clay Aiken’s dramatic coming out after he accidently impregnated a girl.”

“You’re kidding.” Adam plants his elbows on his desk, leaning towards Kris. His eyebrows are practically in his hairline. “Seriously?”

“Stop talking to him!” hisses Danny from Katy’s other side. “He’s a _traitor_!”

“Oh my _gawd_ ,” Katy says, intentionally drawling out the last word. “This is not _Mean Girls_!”

“Boo, you whore,” Adam whines with a giddy grin. He shakes his head happily. “Man, I think I love this place.”

“Class!” barks Mr. Cowell. “The bell has rung!”  


  
*****

  
“So I’ve been thinking,” Adam says when he slides into the seat next to Kris in English. “If the drama kids are like the Montagues and the choir kids are like the Capulets, does that make me Romeo and you Juliet?”

“No, because there’s no neutral Mercutio,” Kris says without looking up from the spark notes he had printed out to review the reading. “Also what happened to backing off?”

“This is how I am,” Adam replies with a grin. “Plus, you’re cute, can I help it? It’s okay, you can tell your pretty girlfriend that I keep my hands off other ladies’ men.”

“Girlfriend?” Kris asks. “You mean Katy?”

“If that’s the cute blonde who sits next to you in Music Theory, then yes.” Adam cocks his head to the side. “You guys have the body language of a couple.”

“We dated for two years, we’re not dating anymore.” Kris waves his finger at Adam jokingly. “Don’t get your hopes up.”

“Never,” Adam protests, clasping his hand over his heart.  


  
*****

  
At lunch, Adam sets his tray down next to Kris and says, “What’s this I hear about a talent show?”

“What are you doing here?” demands Danny. Allison whacks him on the arm and gives him a dirty look.

“Hi,” she says brightly. “I’m Allison. The rude one is Danny.”

Everyone else introduces themselves kind of haphazardly. Scott is too busy pouring oil and vinegar over his salad, so Lil introduces him instead. Adam nods, eyes wide, and then recites back all the names perfectly.

“Wow,” Megan says. She is terrible with names. “That’s pretty good.”

“This talent show,” Adam presses. “Everyone has been terribly vague.”

“Every year,” Scott says in an exasperated voice before anyone else can explain, “the whole school descends into absolute madness over a period of two weeks while we have possibly the most ridiculously elaborate high school talent show in the world. The winners usually become stupidly popular.”

“Like the Davids!” Allison says, nodding at the Davids. Little David is sitting really close to Big David today; there’s a pool among the choir kids about when they’ll finally start dating. “They’re in the men’s choir.”

“Scott always places high,” Matt says, elbowing Anoop when Anoop tries to steal a tater tot. “Because he’s, you know, insanely good at piano.”

“He acts like he doesn’t care, but he _totally does_ ,” Anoop adds. Scott flips him the bird.

“Basically,” Katy explains when it appears that no one is actually going to be of any help, “there are five rounds, narrowing the competition down gradually over the course of two weeks. Three rounds the first week, two the second. The school votes, though there are judges who give them ratings. The final five compete on Saturday night – there’s always a _huge_ crowd that comes out.”

“So any kind of talent?” Adam asks curiously.

“Yeah, Katie Kay won on dance two years ago,” Michael says, ignoring the glares everyone throws him. “What? It’s true. And she’s _hot_ , sue me if I notice.”

“It usually comes down to the drama and choir students,” Kris says. “Last year, Big David placed first and Little David placed second, but Alisan placed third.”

“Year before that, Katie Kay placed first, Clay Aiken placed second, and Shia placed third.” Allison stabs the air with her finger. “We always balance out in the end. No one ever has the lead for long.”

“This is ridiculous,” Adam says happily. “I feel like at a minute, you’re gonna whip out shivs and have a duel.”

“That wouldn’t be fair, they’d totally win,” Kris protests. “They’ve got Brad.”

“Yeah, he’s a vicious little thing.” Adam beams happily. “I like him.”

“Why _are_ you sitting with us?” Kris demands, now totally confused. “Didn’t my cautionary tale this morning teach you anything?”

“It taught me that everyone at this school is batshit crazy,” Adam admits. “It also taught me that I want to have it both ways.” He pauses, considering. “That is not a phrase I ever imagined myself saying.”

“You are insane,” Kris announces. The bell rings and Adam gets up, grinning.

“Yes, well,” Adam informs Kris saucily, “sanity is overrated.” He waltzes out of the cafeteria and Katy claps Kris on the shoulder comfortingly.

“Yep,” she says, “he definitely has a crush on you.”  


  
*****

  
“Are you doing the talent show?” Adam asks Kris after choir. “Because you definitely should. You’re hella talented.”

“Hella?” Kris demands, raising his eyebrows.

“I’m feeling like I should conform to LA stereotype,” Adam explains. “I already fail the blond surfer stereotype. So are you going to do it?”

“I dunno,” Kris admits, readjusting his bag on his shoulder. “I haven’t decided.”

“You have to!” Adam protests, waving his hands. “I can’t do it by myself.”

“Aren’t Brad and everyone trying out too?” inquires Kris. “Why aren’t you harassing them?”

“Because I like you, Kristopher Allen. You’re a nice guy. You apparently save puppies in your spare time and you probably help old ladies cross the street. Despite the rivalry, everyone in drama thinks you’re great.” Adam shrugs. “Also, you’re talented and rumor has it you’ve never tried out.”

“I never know if I’m any good,” Kris says softly. Adam’s expression softens.

“Hey, hey. Why don’t I come over to your house and we’ll talk it through? Pick some music for you.” Adam tilts his head to the side. “Saturday?”

“Okay,” Kris says after a moment, nodding. “Noon?”

“I’ll get your address later,” Adam promises with a small, private smile. Kris’s stomach twists oddly and he nods quickly before hurrying away to class.  


  
*****

  
“So you have a date,” Katy says, sipping on her iced coffee. “Cute. I’m glad you’re moving on.”

“It’s not a date,” Kris hisses. “I don’t like guys! I’m not gay!”

“Look, sweetheart,” Katy says, leaning across the table and grabbing his hand, “being attracted to Adam does not necessarily mean you’re gay. It could mean that you’re bisexual.”

“I never said I was attracted to him!” Kris exclaims, trying not to feel guilty. The truth is, Adam is kind of fascinating and he is undeniably attractive. Kris is trying hard to ignore that.

“But you are,” Katy says, damn her knowing ways. “You opened up to him right away. You’re never this outgoing with people, not right at the outset.”

The annoying thing is that she’s right. Kris doesn’t open up to people right away; all of his friends are _old_ friends, people he’s known since childhood. He makes an effort to be nice to other people – opens doors, says ‘please’ and ‘thank you,’ and helps people when they ask for it – but he rarely actually talks to people he doesn’t know and he certainly doesn’t invite them to his house only a few days after meeting them.

“Oh god,” Kris murmurs, dropping his head in his hand. “What am I going to do?”

“Use protection?” Katy suggests, arching an eyebrow. She smirks when Kris chokes on his coffee.  


  
*****

  
“What’s this about you having a date with the new kid?” Megan asks the next morning at school. Kris presses his forehead to his locker, breathing out hard through his nose.

“I’m going to kill Katy,” he mutters, then says, louder, “It’s not a date, it’s just – we’re hanging out.”

Megan slaps him on the back and says, “Well, if that’s what you want to call it nowadays.” She shakes her head fondly. “Oh, you crazy kids.”

“I hate you,” he tells her sincerely. “All of you.”

“I’m actually kind of jealous,” Megan carries on, not listening to him. “He’s tall – you know what they say about tall guys. And with jeans that tight it’s hard to miss how big his –”

“Oh my god I don’t want to hear this!” Kris shouts, clapping his hands to his ears.

Except that once she’s mentioned it, Kris starts noticing the fact that Adam does, indeed, wear very tight jeans that most certainly accentuate his… _area_. And when Kris thinks about _it_ , he gets all hot and shivery until he makes himself think of pink elephants.

Adam notices Kris clutching his pencil extra hard in Music Theory and hisses, “Hey, chill out, Kris.” He reaches out and lays a hand on Kris’s wrist. “Relax,” he orders and Kris instantly relaxes, his hand loosening on his pencil. His stomach twists and he sucks in a hard breath, very much aware of the warmth of Adam’s hand through his sleeve.

Kris is beginning to admit that he might be just the tiniest bit gay for Adam.  


  
*****

  
Brad corners him before fourth period and hisses, “Adam picked his side!”

“He hasn’t picked a side,” Kris replies, and then clamps his mouth shut, startled.

“He sat with us first!” Brad says, somewhat hysterically. “ _I have people to vouch for that._ ”

“Um,” Kris says again, because even Brad at his best is somewhat overwhelming. “Okay?”

“Stop trying to steal him, Kristopher Allen,” Brad says accusingly, pointing his finger at Kris. “For a choir kid, you’re not that bad. I don’t want to have to hate you. And if you tell anyone I said that, I will deny like Bill Clinton.”

“So unconvincingly?” Kris suggests and he claps a hand over his mouth, eyes going wide.

Brad narrows his eyes at Kris. “Something is different about you,” he murmurs thoughtfully. “I don’t know what it is, but I like it.” He pokes Kris in the shoulder and hurries off, leaving Kris to run to his next class.

Adam frowns when Kris sits down and asks, “What did Brad want?”

“To mark his territory,” Kris replies bitterly.  


  
*****

  
Adam starts alternating tables every day, which infuriates Danny and, to a lesser extent, Lil and Michael. Also, Brad. Adam cheerfully ignores all of them, privately confiding to Kris that he kinda likes messing with people.

And then it’s Saturday and Adam is coming over at noon and Kris’s house is a _mess_. His parents are out on a church retreat, his brother’s off at college, and Kris is left alone in a messy house with the guy he possibly may have a crush on about to come over at any minute.

He manages to hide most of the mess by the time Adam shows up and Kris yanks the door open at the knock, his face red with having run across the house. “Hi,” he says breathlessly.

“Hey,” Adam says, warmly, and Kris is just so hopelessly charmed. He gestures Adam in and closes the door behind him. “So show me your stuff, Allen.”

Kris panics for a moment before he remembers why he’d invited Adam over and he nods hurriedly, trying to wipe his face clean of his horrified yet vaguely excited expression. “Yeah, okay, the piano’s through here,” he babbles, gesturing to a door that he dives through before he can try to concuss himself on the wall out of sheer embarrassment. Adam follows through a moment later and whistles, impressed.

“You play piano?” Adam asks enviously, looking at the baby grand Kris’s mom had bought in hopes that her children would be musical. Kris was the only one who was, but he had avoided piano for years before finally taking it up.

“I only just started playing. I’m not nearly as good as Matt, or Scott.” Kris sits down on the bench and rests his hands on the keys. “But I’m getting better.” He plays the beginning chords of ‘Bright Lights’ and Adam hums the opening bars along with him.

“Well, go on,” Adam prompts after a moment. “Sing me a song, Kristopher Allen.”

Kris rolls his eyes, but starts singing ‘Bright Lights,’ fumbling a couple of words out of nervousness at the start. He grows more confident as he continues, voice growing stronger, and by the end of the song, he’s let go of his nervousness. He finishes triumphantly and Adam applauds, grinning.

“You’re awesome,” he says sincerely, reaching out to clap Kris on the back. “You just have to be more confident. Here –”

Adam leans across Kris’s back and Kris straightens instantly, gulping desperately as Adam runs his hands down Kris’s arms. “Relax,” Adam whispers in Kris’s ear. “You’re good, just remember that.” He presses a hand to the small of Kris’s back and forces Kris to sit up straighter. “And sing from your chest, not your throat.”

The rest of the hour goes something like that and by the end, Kris is half incredibly aroused and half terrified out of his mind. He’s never experienced anything like this; when he’d asked Katy out, it had been after knowing her ever since first grade. (The first time they met, she drew a smiley face on his hand in sharpie and told him they’d be best friends forever.)

“I’m hungry,” Adam remarks when Kris calls a stop to their rehearsal. “Do you want to go get something to eat?”

“I can make something,” Kris volunteers. “Cheaper, plus you don’t have to walk anywhere.”

Adam grins wryly and pats his (definitely not fat) stomach. “That’ll do wonders for my figure.”

Kris rolls his eyes tolerantly and heads for the kitchen, Adam trailing in his wake. Kris tries to shoo him, but Adam insists on helping him out, so Kris puts him to work rinsing and chopping tomatoes. Kris takes on the task of slicing onions, but the onions his dad had bought are extra juicy and his eyes won’t stop watering.

“Hey,” Adam says softly, wiping his hands on a dishtowel. “You’re crying.” He reaches out and gently wipes a tear from Kris’s cheek. “Onions get you bad?”

“Yeah, but not usually like this,” Kris complains, wiping at his eyes with the back of his sleeve. “I don’t know why they’re bothering me so much today.”

“Give me the knife, I’ll do it.” Adam gently takes the knife from Kris’s hands and takes over slicing the onions. “Onions don’t bother me, for some reason.”

Kris watches for a minute to watch Adam slice, then shakes his head and sets a pot of water to boil. “Maybe I’m just a softer heart than you.”

Adam flashes Kris a bright smile and says, “Oh, I’m soft-hearted. But you, at least, have had a girlfriend, or so I’ve heard.”

“Yeah, I have had a girlfriend.” Kris salts the water, then rummages through the cupboard for a box of pasta. “What, you mean you’ve never had a…anything?”

“Nope,” Adam says cheerfully. “Completely virginal.”

“Really?” Kris asks, shocked. “Never even been kissed?”

“Not even that,” Adam says mock-sadly. “It’s okay, I don’t mind. Why, does that surprise you?”

“A little,” Kris confesses. “You just seem so…confident. Sure of what you want.”

“Slutty,” Adam translates. “That’s what Brad said too. He also offered to take care of it for me.” He shakes his head. “But I’m waiting for something good, you know?”

“I understand,” Kris assures him. “Katy and I – we waited a long time.” He rummages around for a skillet and sets it on the stove, pouring a generous portion of olive oil into the pan. “But she’s the only person I’ve ever dated.”

“That makes you one up on me.” Adam holds up a garlic clove. “Do you want one of these?”

“Slice up two or three, depending on how much garlic you want,” Kris tells him. “What, did you just never meet anyone you wanted?”

“I had a hard time at my old school,” Adam says, in a softer voice. “People weren’t as…accepting…as they are here.”

“Oh,” Kris says, suddenly unable to reply intelligently. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. I must have been at the least tolerant school in Southern California.” He laughs, but it sounds strained. “Are you ready for the garlic?”

“Yes,” Kris says, belatedly turning on the stove. “In here.”

Adam comes to stand next to Kris, dropping a handful of garlic into the oil. His shoulder bumps against Kris’s and for a moment Kris feels a little dizzy, out of place – kind of like the first time Katy had worn make-up to school, her blue eyes huge in her face, her smile shiny and bright. “And here’s your stirring spoon,” Adam says helpfully, nudging Kris and handing him a wooden spoon.

“Thanks,” Kris says as nonchalantly as he can, and Adam goes back to the cutting board, flashing a grin at him.

They cobble together a pretty decent pasta, humming to each other as they do so. Occasionally, Adam just bursts out into a bit of song, his rich voice soaring through the open spaces of Kris’s house. Kris harmonizes when he’s able, but Adam can reach these staggeringly high notes that leave Kris amazed and a little envious.

“I don’t know why I’d bother to enter the talent show if you’re gonna be in it,” Kris complains as he drains the spaghetti. “You’re obviously going to win.”

Adam rolls his eyes and stirs the sauce thoughtfully. “You know, I don’t think so. It really depends on presentation and song choice.”

“Well, I’m pretty sure you’re going to surpass me on presentation,” Kris says dryly. “I’m not much of a showman.” He shakes the pasta in the colander a little and says, “We can probably eat now, though it’ll be hot.”

“I’m good with hot,” Adam says and Kris goes to get plates while Adam turns off the stove. It’s oddly domestic and somehow incredibly comfortable. Kris just likes having Adam around, it seems, and he’s beginning to accept that.

Adam and Kris sit down at the dining table and debate movies while they eat. It eventually degenerates into a truly disturbing argument over what the best chick flick is (they decide on _The Notebook_ ), at which point they move on to music.

They continue the conversation as they clean up the kitchen and wash the dishes. Kris, feeling a little impish, flicks some of the foamy water at Adam’s chest and grins. Adam’s eyes widen in disbelief, his mouth falling open slightly.

“Oh no you didn’t,” he breathes, but he sounds absolutely delighted. When Kris just continues to grin at him, Adam splashes him back, and soon they’re both soaked through, shirts clinging and wet.

“Okay,” Kris protests five minutes later, holding up his hands in surrender. “I give up. You win, you are the suds king.”

“You’re damn right I am,” Adam says sternly. He plucks at the hem of Kris’s plaid shirt and says sarcastically, “I hope this wasn’t designer.”

“Hey, I like this shirt,” Kris complains, though to be honest, it was a gift from his aunt. “Not all of us can be fashionistas like you.”

Adam looks down at his bright red skinny jeans and gold shoes. “Yeah, it would be cruel to expect everyone to be as fabulous as me,” he admits with faux-remorse. “Do you have a shirt I could borrow? I have to go somewhere after this and this is never going to be dry in time.”

“I’m kind of not your size,” Kris points out, looking up at Adam to demonstrate his point.

Adam rolls his eyes dramatically. “Not _anything_?”

Kris thinks and realizes that he has an oversized t-shirt from a summer camp stashed in his room. “Hold on, I might have something.” He runs upstairs to his room and digs it out. It looks like it’ll fit Adam, so he brings it down and offers it out.

“Hmm,” Adam says thoughtfully, looking at it. “Not exactly Fashion Week, but it will do.” He unselfconsciously pulls off his shirt, grimacing when it clings. Kris finds himself unable to look away – not because Adam is super buff or anything – but because for someone as wild and out there as Adam, the guy rarely shows a lot of skin.

He’s paler than Kris would have thought, freckles dotting his skin all over. They form little constellations across Adam’s chest and back and Kris traces one cluster with his eyes before looking up and seeing that Adam is staring at him, eyes wide.

“Kris,” Adam says softly. “That isn’t fair. You can’t – not unless you plan on following through.”

Kris flushes and looks away. “I’ll go dry your shirt,” he mutters, picking up Adam’s soaked shirt from where it fell on the ground and taking it to the laundry room.

He leans his forehead against the cool wall and tries to breathe calmly. He only marginally succeeds before he heads back out into the kitchen.

Adam’s managed to clean up most of the mess and he seems to have pushed away the weirdness that Kris had started, because he’s humming a Beatles song as he wipes down the counter with a paper towel. He grins at Kris and asks, “When do you think my shirt will be dry?”

“Uh, soon,” Kris says vaguely, moving the dishes they had rinsed to the dishwasher. “You said you had to be somewhere.”

Adam waves his hand dismissively. “In an hour and it’s not that big a deal.” He’s wearing Kris’s shirt like it’s no big deal and it fits Adam pretty closely, just shy of being skintight. It’s weird, though; the last person who wore one of Kris’s shirts was Katy. She had pulled it on after they’d had sex and wandered downstairs to get a piece of pie (his parents had, luckily, been out of town).

“Where are you going, anyway?” Kris asks, closing the dishwasher. “Going out on the town? Or a party?”

Adam rolls his eyes. “Oh yes, going to slut it up with the hicks.”

“Hicks?” Kris asks indignantly, putting his hands on his hips. “I thought you said this place was growing on you.”

“Okay, fine, you aren’t hicks.” Adam flaps his hand dismissively. “The point still stands.”

“I’m sorry our nightlife isn’t exciting enough for you, Mr. Los Angeles,” says Kris sardonically, smiling. “You didn’t answer the question. Where are you going?”

“Dinner with my family,” Adam says brightly. “My brother’s going to college out here and my dad’s in town on business, so we thought we’d get together.”

“Your parents are divorced?” Kris asks carefully.

“Yeah, but they still get along really well,” Adam explains. “They were best friends before they got married. After a while, they just couldn’t be friends and be in love too.”

“That happened to me and Katy too,” Kris says, leading the way back into the dining room and sitting down. “I think it was for the better. We would have wound up hating each other if we had stayed together.”

Adam flashes Kris a smile, sitting down. “I saw a guitar in the other room,” he says, changing the subject. “Do you play that, too?”

“Yeah,” Kris says a little uncomfortably. He always feels awkward when he talks about himself. “You?”

“Nope,” Adam replies cheerfully. “Always wanted to learn, though.”

“I can teach you. If you want.” Kris shifts in his seat. “We could make this a weekly thing.”

Adam stares at Kris for a moment and then smiles suddenly and brightly. “That sounds like fun. Thanks, Kris. That’s really nice of you.”

Kris has to force himself to breathe; Adam’s smile is dangerous, he thinks, because Adam holds nothing back and Kris is beginning to think that maybe, just maybe, he might have a crush on Adam.

So Adam does the impossible. He alternates between the drama kids and the choir kids with complete ease and every Saturday, he comes over to Kris’s house and Kris teaches him guitar. 

Adam has a guitar, a Hanukkah gift from an aunt, and Kris is a little jealous of it. It’s beautiful and elegant and very, very shiny. Adam notices Kris’s covetous look and grins. 

“Nice, isn’t it?” he says happily. He settles it across his lap and lets his hand drift over the strings of the guitar. It isn’t in tune and Kris winces. “What?” 

“Let me tune your guitar,” Kris says, holding out his hand for Adam to pass it over. Adam does so and Kris takes it over to the piano so he can tune it to the ‘E’. Kris bends over the guitar in concentration, fingers finding the familiar frets to tune. He finishes and strums a couple of times to hear if it’s in tune. 

It sounds good, so he looks up and says, “Done,” but Adam is staring sort of fixedly at Kris’s fingers. Kris feels himself flush and he quickly thrusts the guitar out to Adam, who jumps and accepts it with a slightly guilty look on his face. 

That would all be fine, except Adam’s fingers are placed wrong and even though Kris shows him how to do it correctly, Adam just can’t get it. Kris sighs and puts down his guitar to come around to Adam’s side. 

“Like _this_ ,” he says, moving Adam’s hand into the right position. Adam’s fingers are warm against his and he has an easier time of reaching the chords than Kris does, probably because his hands are bigger. Adam bends over the guitar in concentration, hair falling forward. Kris notices absently that the nail polish on Adam’s left thumb has chipped off and he taps it gently. “Gonna fix that up?” 

“I dunno,” Adam says a little vaguely. “Like this?” 

Adam has the chord exactly right, his hand curling effortlessly around the neck of the guitar. He strums gently, eyelids lowered. Kris can’t quite stop himself from tracing the curve of Adam’s neck with his eyes. He forces himself to breathe normally and he says, “Yes, like that.” 

Adam isn’t exactly a natural or anything, but he’s eager to learn and he practices like hell. As the weeks go by, he gets better to the point where can play almost all the chords by memory. 

“I wish I could shred,” Adam says wistfully as he watches Kris pick out a melody. “How long did it take you to learn?” 

“I’ve been playing for years.” Kris fumbles a note and mutters, “Shoot!” Adam laughs, then covers his mouth, as if he’s afraid he’d offended Kris. Kris just shoots him an amused look. “I picked it up sort of by ear, and then my parents got me lessons because they were sick of hearing me just screw around.” 

“Damn naturals,” Adam sighs, lying back on the couch. “You make me feel inadequate.” 

“I wouldn’t think that was possible,” Kris quips, sliding a sideways glance at Adam a little nervously. Adam just smiles, looking flattered. 

Kris doesn’t know what do with himself. It’s clear that Adam likes him, but Kris doesn’t know how to respond without Adam thinking it’s out of pity or some misplaced desire to experiment. Kris actually _likes_ Adam, likes how comfortable he is around Adam. And he’s been wondering what it would be like to kiss Adam. 

(He related this to Katy after class when they get their coffee and she had laughed. “Well, _yeah_ ,” she said. “Have you _seen_ him? I think everyone’s thought about what it would be like to kiss him, even Danny.” 

Kris made a face at that mental image. “Gross, don’t say stuff like that.” He sighed and propped his head on his hand. “We had, like, a moment? But then he told me it wasn’t fair.” 

“He’s probably afraid you’re just using him to experiment.” Katy shrugged. “That’s what I would think if I were him.” 

Kris sighed, but he knew she was right. “How do I convince him I’m serious about it?” 

“Are you?” inquired Katy, raising her eyebrows. 

Kris considered it for a moment. “I would like to at least give it a shot.” 

“Then ask him out. That’s what you did with me.” Katy gave him a look. “Come on, Kris, don’t be shy. He likes you, everyone can see that. Why do you think he’s spending so much time with us? I don’t think he’d make the effort to bridge the gap if it weren’t for you.” 

Kris made a thoughtful noise and drank his coffee.)

So after Adam’s guitar lesson, Kris asks, “You wanna go get lunch some place? Maybe see a movie afterwards?” 

Adam pauses while he’s packing up his guitar. “Are you asking me out?” he asks cautiously. 

“Yeah,” Kris admits. “Is that all right?” 

“It is if you really mean it.” Adam finishes putting his guitar away and straightens up. “This isn’t because you feel sorry for me? Because, I don’t know, I’ve never dated anyone or because you know I like you?” 

“Feel sorry for you?” Kris asks, raising his eyebrows. “Have you looked at yourself recently? It’s no hardship to go out with you, Adam, really. And I would like to get to know you better. I like you, Adam. I really do.” 

Adam stares at him for a long moment, his eyes half-lidded. “I don’t know,” he says softly. “This – Kris, I’ve never dated before.” 

“I know,” Kris tells him, touching the back of Adam’s wrist. “I wouldn’t be asking if I wasn’t absolutely sure. You deserve the very best.”

“Gosh, you say the nicest things,” Adam murmurs in a low voice that sends a shiver down Kris’s spine. “In that case, yes.” He catches Kris’s hand in his and smiles, wide a brilliant. “Where to, Mr. Allen? Gonna take me out some place fancy?” 

“Well,” Kris hedges, “not exactly.”

  
*****

The diner is a little place on the outskirts of town, not often frequented by the teen demographic. Kris has been going there since he was a kid and the wait staff knows him well. Penny, a relatively new addition with bright red hair and a sweet disposition, greets him happily.

“Sugar, you haven’t been here in a while.” She kisses his cheek and then turns to look at Adam. “Mm, who’s _this_ tall drink of water? I didn’t know this sleepy old town grew ‘em this handsome.”

“They don’t. He’s new in town.” Kris guides Adam forward with a hand to the small of his back. “Penny, this is Adam.” 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Adam says politely, smiling brightly. Penny looks appropriately charmed. 

“My oh my, sugar, he _is_ a cutie.” She winks at Kris. “Does this mean you’re not dating that cute blonde anymore? ‘Cause if you’re not, I might try to go for it.” 

“I don’t know if Katy dates girls,” Kris says, but he can’t quite repress his grin. 

“Well, you didn’t used to date boys, but I’m pretty sure this is a date.” Penny smiles at Adam. “I can tell, you know? The way Kris is looking at you, I can tell it’s real.” 

Adam looks flustered at that, but he smiles and says, “He’s not alone.” 

“Well, here I am flapping my mouth at you and you probably just want to eat.” Penny gestures them inside and guides them to a corner booth. “I’ll be back in a second,” she continues as she hands them their menus. “Holler if you need anything.” 

Adam watches her go with a faint smile on his face and then turns to grin at Kris. “Bring a lot of your dates here?” 

“I plead the fifth,” Kris says, hiding his smile when Adam laughs. 

“What’s good here?” Adam asks, opening up the menu. “God, they have a lot of choices!”

“Mostly everything is good,” Kris says, not bothering to open his menu. “The burgers are what they’re known for, though.” 

“Well, I’ll have a burger, then.” Adam gives the menu one last glance and sets it down. “I guess this is a regular place for you.” 

“My family used to take me and my brother here after church on Sundays so we’d sit through the services,” Kris explains. “When we were really young, we didn’t like to go.” 

“But you like it now?” Adam infers, propping his elbow on the edge of the table. “I heard you do a lot of stuff with your church.”

Kris shrugs, feeling a little awkward. “Yeah, I guess. Last year we went to Mexico and worked at an orphanage.”

“So you save puppies _and_ lost children.” Adam shakes his head, making a face of amazement. “My family always practiced a sort of relaxed Judaism. We do the major holidays, but not much else. Never really even went to Temple except on the High Holidays.” 

“Did you have a Bar Mitzvah?” Kris asks, eager to learn more about Adam. He knows the life story of everyone in town; it’s one of the hazards of living with the same people for seventeen years. Adam is still sort of an unknown quantity. 

“Of course!” Adam exclaims, flinging his hands in the air. “Like I’d miss the chance to have a massive party and get tons of money.” 

Penny picks that moment to come over, a pencil tucked behind her ear. “Have y’all decided what you’re gonna have?” She pulls out a little notepad and says, “I’m guessing Kris’ll have his usual, but what about you, Adam?”

“I’ll have a hamburger and a Diet Coke,” Adam says. Penny notes that down and smiles. 

“Okay, I’ll be back soon with your food.” She takes their menus when she goes, taking one last moment to point at Adam and mouth, _He’s cute_! at Kris.

“What’s your usual?” asks Adam curiously. 

“Cheeseburger with a vanilla milkshake,” Kris says. “I’ve gotten it since I was a kid, though sometimes I do try other things.”

“Cheeseburger and a milkshake?” Adam asks, grinning. “That’s so fifties of you, Kris.” 

“We can go to a sock hop later if you like,” Kris replies and Adam bursts out laughing. 

“Kris Allen, you are _saucy_!” exclaims Adam. “Do you think we could find a sock hop here?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” Kris says resignedly. “Except then I suspect this town would turn into _Footloose_. Or _Dirty Dancing_.”

“Don’t put Brad in the corner,” Adam quips. Kris ducks his head to hide his grin. “And I guess I’m Kevin Bacon in this?” 

“You’re already shaking things up,” Kris tells him. “Why do you think Danny and Brad were freaking out so much?” 

Adam shakes his head in amazement. “I still can’t believe that the rivalry is that serious! It seems so…clichéd.”

“Well, you’re not helping on the cliché front, Adam,” Kris teases, raising his eyebrows. Adam laughs, nodding in concession. 

Penny shows up with their food a few minutes later while Adam is telling Kris an incredibly improbable story about his time in Los Angeles. “…and then Felicia leapt over the hedge and ran for the street, the security guards chasing after her.” 

“What did _you_ do?” Kris demands, trying to hold in his laughs. 

“What else could I do? I ran and got the car.” Adam grins as Kris bursts into fresh peals of laughter. Penny beams as she sets their plates down in front of them. 

“I see you’re having a good time.” She winks at Adam and says, “The girls in the back were saying they haven’t seen Kris laugh this much since he was a kid.” 

Kris can feel a flush creeping up his neck, so he quickly picks up his cheeseburger to hide his face. Adam is smiling at Kris now. “Really?” he asks Penny. “I guess that’s a good sign.” 

Penny pats Adam on the shoulder and says, “Good luck with him.” She smiles at Kris, adding, “If you need anything, just holler.” 

Kris busies himself with eating his burger, feeling embarrassed and somehow naked. Adam watches him for a moment with an amused expression on his face. Finally, he picks up his burger and takes a bite. 

“Mmm,” he sighs. “You weren’t kidding about the burgers.”

“I don’t kid about burgers,” Kris says, relaxing a little. Adam keeps making happy noises as he eats his burger and Kris can’t help but be a little distracted. Adam looks up and catches Kris looking at him. 

“What?” he asks, raising his eyebrows. “Do I have something on my face?” He actually does; ketchup has smeared at the corner of his mouth. 

“Yeah,” Kris says and without thinking, he reaches across the table to wipe it away. Adam freezes as Kris’s thumb grazes the edge of his mouth. Kris pauses, his thumb pressed to Adam’s skin, and realizes that maybe he shouldn’t have done that. “Sorry,” he mutters, pulling away and wiping his hand on his napkin. 

“It’s okay,” Adam says after a moment. “Don’t worry about it.” 

They finish eating mostly in silence, Kris feeling abruptly awkward and unsure in his own skin. When Penny brings the check, Kris makes a grab for it, only to have Adam yank it away. 

“No, man, I need to repay you for teaching me guitar.” Adam pulls out his wallet and slips a couple of bills into the check holder. “This was nice, Kris. Thanks.” 

Kris nods and gets up from the table, offering Adam a hand up. Adam’s hand is large and warm, his rings cool points against Kris’s skin. “It was my pleasure.” 

Adam gives Kris a look that makes Kris feel all hot and shivery and Kris hurries out to the car, Adam following behind him. When they reach Kris’s car, Kris turns around and grabs Adam’s shirt, hauling him forward. Adam squeaks and wraps his arms around Kris’s waist to keep from falling. 

“Kris,” he says softly, looking down. “What are –”

Kris says, “Adam, I’m going to kiss you. If you object, say something now.” 

“I am totally on board with this,” Adam admits, and Kris rises up on his tiptoes, reaching up to pull Adam’s face to his. 

Adam kisses tentatively, chastely, and Kris remembers that Adam said he’d never been kissed before. Kris shudders and kisses Adam harder, licking his way into Adam’s mouth. Adam shivers, one of his hands slipping just under the hem of Kris’s t-shirt to rest against Kris’s skin.

Adam pulls back, breathing hard, and tilts his head forward to rest against Kris’s. “Kris,” he says softly. “Why are you – why are you doing this?” 

“I like you,” Kris says with a sigh. “I really, honestly do.” 

Adam searches his face for something – Kris doesn’t know what. He seems to find whatever it is, because he leans back down and kisses Kris, this time more confidently He presses Kris back against the car, leaning up against him and keeping Kris from moving. It’s weird, not to be in control – Katy had mostly let Kris take the lead – but there’s something kind of nice, too. Adam is warm and big and solid against him, and Kris gasps when Adam’s teeth graze his bottom lip.

“Okay,” Adams says when he pulls back. “Okay.”

  
*****

After Adam goes home, Kris jumps around a little in excitement, then tries to calm himself before his parents come home from their weekly book club meeting. They breeze in a little later than usual, chatting over something that had happened in the meeting.

Kris’s mom pats his shoulder and says, “Honey, you look happy. Good day?” 

“You could say that,” Kris agrees, unable to stop grinning. His dad laughs and wraps an arm around Kimberly’s waist. 

“He looks like he’s in love again, don’t you think?” Neil asks Kimberly, smiling. “I wonder who it is.” 

“Are you and Katy dating again?” Kimberly asks hopefully. “She’s such a nice girl.” 

“No,” Kris says and adds, “I just had a good day.”

At school, Adam is hardly different at all, except for that he is even more flirty than usual, winking at Kris as he sits next to him in classes. Katy widens her eyes at Kris and mouths, _Details_! 

“Later,” he hisses, waving his hand at her. She glances over at Adam, who’s grinning hugely, and smirks. 

It’s Adam’s day to sit with the drama kids, so Kris has to deal with everyone at lunch badgering him without anyone to share the burden. Allison pokes him in the arm repeatedly until he turns and looks at her. 

“Penny told me you and Kris came into the diner on a date,” Allison squeals, majorly excited. “You didn’t _tell us_.”

“I didn’t realize that I was supposed to,” Kris replies, raising his eyebrows. 

“Come on, man, you know this school lives off gossip.” Matt jostles Kris’s shoulder teasingly. “But man, you’re tapping that? Bet Brad’s gonna flip a shit.” 

“We haven’t, like, said that we’re boyfriends,” Kris mutters, embarrassed.

“If it’s not on Facebook, it’s not official,” Scott says, drizzling vinaigrette over his salad, which is rich considering that Scott refuses on principle to make himself a Facebook page.

Danny clearly just doesn’t understand what’s going on at all. He stares sort of blankly into space for a while and then says, “But Kris, I thought you were straight.” 

The whole table goes quiet and Kris glances at Katy, who raises her eyebrows at him in a sort of, _what can you do?_ way.

“Uh,” he says, “I never really gave it much thought before. But I really like Adam. And I loved Katy.” 

“It’s called _bi_ sexual,” Lil drawls, breaking the tension. “You know. Bi. As in, two.” 

Michael guffaws and slaps Danny on the back. “There you go, man. Perfect explanation.” 

Danny sighs and Kris wonders if he’ll be trouble in the future, but lets it go for the time being. He glances over to where Adam is sitting and sees that Adam’s looking over at him. Adam grins and blows him a kiss when he catches Kris’s gaze. Kris flushes and ducks his head, unsuccessfully trying to hide a grin. 

“You really have it bad, don’t you,” Megan murmurs to him on the way to class. “I can see it. The last time you were like this was when you and Katy started going out.” 

Kris is about to ask her what she means when he realizes that he’s grinning. He tries to stop, but the corners of his mouth keep wanting to twitch upward. And then Adam waves at him and Kris is gone, grinning so widely his face hurts. Megan laughs and punches Kris in the shoulder as she heads to her place.

  
*****

When he and Katy meet after school, she’s bouncing on the balls of her feet and practically clapping her hands, she’s so excited. “Oh my god, Kris!” she exclaims. “You have to tell me _everything_.”

“It wasn’t all that exciting,” Kris sighs, taking her arm and walking with her to their coffee place. “Really.” 

“I don’t care,” Katy insists. “Tell me. There’s no one at this school worth dating except for you and I need to live vicariously through your love life.” 

“It isn’t weird?” he asks as they get in line to place their orders. “To talk to me about who I’m dating?” 

“Not really,” Katy says. “We were friends before we were anything else and you’re still my best friend.” 

Kris smiles at her. “That’s sweet.” 

“It’s true.” She turns away to place her order before letting Kris place his. Once they have their drinks, they head to their usual table and sit down. “Now, tell me what happened.” 

Kris sighs and recounts their lunch date to Katy. “And after that, we drove back to my house and he went home,” he concludes, lifting his coffee cup to his lips. 

“That’s _it_?” Katy asks incredulously. “You didn’t even take him back to your place to make out?” 

“Look, both of us are kind of new to this,” Kris says defensively. “I’ve never dated a guy before and Adam’s never – well, he’s never dated before.” 

“You’re his first?” Katy demands, her eyes widening. “That’s kind of weird, isn’t it? I would’ve thought Adam would have dated before.” 

“He said he didn’t have much opportunity at his old school.” Kris shrugs, setting his cup down. “And it’s not like I have any idea what I’m doing.” 

Katy narrows her eyes thoughtfully. “Well, then I guess that was probably a good idea. But you guys are going out again, right?” 

“I’m giving him another lesson next week,” Kris says. “So, probably.” 

“This is so exciting!” exclaims Katy happily. “You’re gonna need to do some research, I think. If he’s really new to this whole thing too, then both of you are learning as you go along.”

Kris imagines what “research” might entail and makes a face. “I really don’t think that’s the best idea,” he hazards. 

Katy ignores him. “And then I’m going to have to have a chat with Mr. Lambert,” she says thoughtfully, a devilish glint in her eyes. 

“Oh God,” Kris moans, covering his eyes. “Katy…”

“I’m the best friend now, it’s my job.” She pats his arm gently and says, “Don’t worry about it. I won’t scare him too much.”

  
*****

Adam and Katy are a little late for class the next morning. Katy looks incredibly smug and very innocent in her sundress and sandals. Adam, on the other hand, looks a little shaken. Once Katy has taken her seat, Kris leans over and hisses, “What did you say to him?”

“Oh, not that much,” Katy says innocently, batting her eyelashes at him. Kris tries not to smile, but it’s just so Katy: fun and playful and also incredibly tough.

Kris lingers after class while Adam packs up, waiting until Adam looks up to ask, “So what did she say?” 

Adam shudders. “She detailed the things she would do to me if I broke your heart. God, Kris, she is one hell of a girl. If I were straight, I might have gone for her.” 

“She is great, isn’t she?” Kris says proudly. He walks with Adam out of class, clutching his book to his side. “I hope she didn’t scare you off.” 

Adam shoots him a warm glance. “Never.” 

“Okay,” Kris says after a moment. “Good.”

  
*****

Anoop and Matt, the jerks, wolf-whistle when Adam joins their table at lunch. Adam sketches a light bow, grinning widely, before sitting next to Kris and taking his hand. Kris almost jumps, but manages to stay calm. From the drama table, Brad is giving Kris a Look.

“Aww,” Allison says, reaching across to pinch Kris’s cheeks. He bears it good-naturedly for a moment before batting her away. “You two are so cute.” 

“It’s a regular high school movie,” Megan agrees, nudging Danny in the side until he mutters an agreement. Michael just looks a little confused, but he seems to go with it. 

Lil arrives with Scott, leading him to the table. “Hey, Adam,” she says, sitting. Scott sits next to her and says, “Oh, Adam’s here again?”

“Yep!” Adam says, grinning at everyone. Katy beams right back at him, but her smile is a little prickly around the edges. Adam gives her a polite nod and scoots closer to Kris. 

“Stop it,” Kris tells Katy and she grins. “You’ve had your fun.” 

Katy laughs. “Fine, fine. Party pooper.”

  
*****

On Wednesday, the principal announces that sign-ups for the talent show will be starting on Friday. “There will be a table in the cafeteria,” he says over the PA system. “You all know the drill. Give your name, type of act, and be sure to attend the pre-show meeting so that the stage hands know how to set up for you.”

Adam reaches out and pokes Kris in the shoulder. “You’re signing up, right?” he asks, eyes wide. “You’d better be.” 

“No, I will,” Kris promises. “And you, too?” 

Adam wiggles his fingers. “Of course,” he exclaims. “A chance to show-off? I’m _there_.”

“I should have known,” Kris mutters, but he can’t help grinning dopily at Adam. Katy ducks to hide her smile. 

Sign-ups are, as usual, a total nightmare. The line is super long and poor Ms. Degeneres is trying to corral the students into some kind of order to little success. Finally, Brad takes charge and shouts, “You fucktards, just make a single-file line!” 

People slowly shuffle into line and Ms. Degeneres shakes her head, amused. “Thank you, Mr. Bell,” she says wryly. “I appreciate the sentiment, if not the execution.” Ms. Degeneres has a _smoking_ hot wife who works as a drama teacher at a nearby school, so the drama kids tend to be nice to her. 

Kris gets in line behind Lil and Scott. Allison bounds up a moment later and says, “This is going to be _awesome_ , Kris!” 

“Listen to the girl,” says Adam from right by Kris’s ear. Kris manages not to startle, but it’s a close thing. “This will be fun, remember that.” 

Kris nods, but he’s never really been able to fully banish the nervousness he feels when he performs. Even when he performs with the choir, he feels a vague sense of stage fright and has to pick a point to stare at while he sings.

The line moves slowly but steadily, and within ten minutes, Kris is at the front of the line. Ms. Degeneres looks up and smiles. “Mr. Allen,” she says brightly. “This is a first.” 

“Yeah,” Kris says. “I’m doing a musical performance.” 

“All right.” Ms. Degeneres marks it down and says, “I’m looking forward to seeing what you do, Mr. Allen.” 

Kris waits while Allison and Adam sign up and Adam grabs his arm when he’s done. “Okay,” he says to Kris, “now I’m really going to need those guitar lessons.” 

“You’re allowed to have backing music or a backing band,” Kris points out and Adam flaps his hand impatiently. 

“I know, but I might want to do one solo. Who knows?” He beams and pecks Kris on the cheek. Kris flushes bright red as Allison laughs, delighted. “Come on, Kris.” 

“Oh, all right,” Kris says, feigning reluctance, and Adam squeezes his arm gently before letting go.

  
*****

“So hey,” Kris says as they’re leaving choir. “On Saturday, you want to catch a movie after our lesson?”

Adam beams. “All right, sure.” 

Of course, they don’t actually end up watching the movie. About ten minutes in, Kris is running his hands along Adam’s jaw before pushing up the armrest and leaning over to kiss Adam. 

“I’m not very good at this,” Adam whispers between kisses. “I don’t know how.” 

“Follow my lead,” Kris suggests and he slides his tongue along Adam’s lower lip, asking permission. Adam tentatively opens his mouth to Kris and then things really start moving. Kris slides his hands under Adam’s t-shirt in a reflex before remembering that Adam doesn’t exactly have breasts, but Adam’s all smooth skin and Kris can’t stop _touching_.

Adam bites at Kris’s lower lip and Kris moans, shuddering. Adam does it again until Kris is almost limp in his arms, draped over his lap. Kris breaks away to gasp for air and asks, “Wanna get out of here?” 

Adam looks around and Kris follows his gaze; most people are watching the movie, but there are a few people giving them scandalized looks. “Yeah,” Adam says after a second. “Let’s go.”

Kris can hardly concentrate on the drive back to his house. Adam keeps _looking_ at him and biting his lip, eyes wide and dark. 

They’re barely inside the house before Adam’s kissing Kris again, taking the lead as he pulls Kris in close, kissing across Kris’s jaw and down his neck to suck on his collarbone. Kris sighs and buries a hand in Adam’s hair before gently tugging his head up. 

“Living room?” he suggests. “I have a couch.” 

“Good point,” Adam says breathlessly. He grabs Kris’s hand and tows him to the living room, where he sits on the couch, pulling Kris down on top of him. Kris rocks a little, experimentally, and Adam groans, head falling back. “Should we be careful?”

“My parents aren’t due home for another few hours,” Kris assures him and he shifts so that Adam’s thigh is between his legs. Adam’s eyes flutter open at that and he looks down at Kris’s crotch, a small smile creeping across his face when he sees that Kris is hard. 

“Want a hand with that?” he says with a leer. Kris groans at the pun, but nods as he rocks harder against Adam’s leg. Adam grabs him around the waist and rolls them over, popping open the button to Kris’s jeans with one hand. Kris flails, squirming so that he doesn’t fall off the couch, and Adam smacks him lightly on the stomach. Kris gasps, the sharp shock sending a wave of pleasure through him. 

“Sorry, did that hurt?” Adam asks, looking up, eyes wide. 

“Not exactly,” Kris murmurs breathlessly. Adam’s eyes darken and he smiles. 

“Wow,” he breathes, and he slips his left hand underneath Kris’s shirt while he unzips Kris’s jeans with his right. Kris gasps as Adam curls a hand around his cock and then again when Adam pinches his stomach. His cock jerks in Adam’s hand and Adam says, “Did you know?” 

“Know what?” Kris breathes as Adam’s hand strokes him gently, then moans as Adam squeezes a little harder. 

“That you like it a little rough.” Adam crawls back up Kris’s body, his weight pressing Kris into the couch, the hard line of his cock pressing into Kris’s thigh. Adam kisses Kris again, more practiced and confident this time as his hand speeds up. 

Kris breaks away so he can gasp and Adam bites the side of his jaw. Kris shudders and comes, moaning as Adam strokes him through it. Adam beams happily and pulls his hand out of Kris’s boxers, leaving Kris sticky and damp. 

Adam has his pants open and his cock out before Kris can even sit up, his hand moving and smearing Kris’s come over his cock. Kris sits up – with difficulty – and says roughly, “Let me.” He reaches forward to wrap his hand around the base of Adam’s cock and Adam moans, shaking hard as he comes. 

Adam collapses forward against Kris and sighs, “Well, that was embarrassingly quick.” 

“First time,” Kris murmurs, nosing at Adam’s ear. Adam nods and kisses the side of Kris’s mouth, stroking his clean hand along Kris’s back soothingly. Kris kind of just wants to curl up and let Adam take care of him, but he knows he should get up, clean off. 

“We should wash up,” Adam says after a moment and he hauls himself up, looking at his come-smeared hand. “Coming?”

“Already did,” Kris quips, but he pulls himself off the couch, tucking himself back into his pants. Adam copies him and follows Kris to the bathroom. Kris washes off his hands and then moves aside so that Adam can rinse off too. “I feel sticky.” 

Adam laughs and corners Kris against the bathroom wall. “Job well done, then.” He leans down and kisses Kris slowly, languidly. Kris can’t stop himself from arching up into it, tucking his hands into the waistband of Adam’s jeans. Adam pinches his side and Kris groans, startled by the sharp rush of pleasure. 

He hears a door slam and his mom calls, “Kris? Are you home?” 

He jerks back and whacks his head against the wall painfully. “Oh my god,” he breathes. Adam starts to giggle. 

“I thought you said they wouldn’t be home for a while,” he teases quietly, breath rushing against Kris’s skin. 

“Kris?” his mom calls and she sounds closer. “Honey, are you in the bathroom?” 

“Okay, let’s get this over with,” Kris whispers to Adam, taking his hand. He tows Adam out of the bathroom and almost runs straight into his mom, who raises her eyebrows when she sees Adam. Her gaze drops to their linked hands and her eyebrows go even higher.

“Mom,” Kris says, his grip tightening on Adam’s hand, “this is Adam.” 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am,” Adam says politely, though he doesn’t reach out to shake hands. Kris is grateful; he doesn’t want to even think about how awkward that would be. “Kris has been teaching me to play guitar.”

“Call me Kimberly,” Kris’s mom says. She starts to smile in realization. “Are you the reason my son has been so happy recently?” 

Adam looks at Kris in surprise and Kris shrugs. “I suppose I must be,” Adam says slowly, smiling. “Is that a problem?” 

“If Kris likes you, then there’s no problem,” Kimberly says warmly, reaching out to wrap an arm around Kris’s shoulders. “We’re not that kind of family.” 

“Thank you,” Adam says, beaming. 

“Why don’t you stay for dinner?” suggests Kimberly. “I’d love to get to know the boy my son is dating. He’s kept awful quiet about you for some reason.” 

“ _Mom_ ,” Kris complains, cheeks heating in embarrassment. 

“I know you were planning on telling us,” Kimberly tells him, a slight edge of warning in her voice. “Weren’t you?” 

Kris actually hadn’t given it much thought; the truth was that he had been planning on holding off until he was sure that the thing with Adam was going to be serious. And, well. 

He smiles up at Adam and says, “Yeah, I was.” 

Neil is humming as he patters around the kitchen. When the three of them appear in the door way, he pauses and says, “Well, who is this?” 

“This is Kris’s new boyfriend,” Kimberly says brightly. “The one he told us nothing about.” 

“Hi, sir,” Adam says, a little nervously. “I’m Adam.” 

“And I’m Neil,” Kris’s dad says. “Kris, why didn’t you tell us you were dating boys now?” 

“It’s kind of new,” Kris says, embarrassed. 

“Neil?” Adam asks. “My brother’s name is Neil!” 

“Oh, you have a brother?” Kimberly breaks in. She takes Adam’s arm and leads him away, saying, “Tell me about your family.” Adam throws Kris a helpless glance and Kris shrugs, resigned. 

“So why didn’t you tell us?” Neil asks calmly, opening the refrigerator and pulling out a steak. “Were you afraid?” 

“ _No_ , Dad, jeez,” Kris sighs. “I know you guys love me, I didn’t think you would care about that. I was just, you know. I was feeling it out. I wasn’t sure about things.” 

Neil gives Kris a sharp look. “Kris, if you can’t see that boy’s crazy about you, then you need to get your eyes checked. He didn’t bolt when we showed up, he didn’t get mad when Kim said you hadn’t mentioned him. That says a lot. You’re damn lucky.” 

“No, I know,” Kris sighs. He sits down on the stepstool they keep in the kitchen. “I just – this is all new to me. Adam just sort of…happened.” 

“He’s polite enough.” Neil starts chopping the steak up into chunks. “I was thinking fajitas for dinner, what do you think?”

“Sounds good.” Kris gets up and finds a skillet for his dad. “You guys didn’t seem too surprised, though.” 

“Son, if you think Penny didn’t call us up after your date, then you underestimate how much we gossip about you,” Neil says with a laugh. “We were hoping you’d tell us soon.” 

Kris wilts a little. “I’m sorry. I just wasn’t ready.” 

Neil claps Kris on the shoulder. “It’s all right. We understand. Just trust us, okay? We love you, no matter what.” 

“I know,” Kris says. Neil pats Kris’s shoulder reassuringly. 

“Good. Now help me chop up some onions,” he orders, pointing a commanding finger.

  
*****

Once the food is cooking, Neil sends Kris out to collect Adam and Kimberly for dinner. Kris finds them in the living room, where they’re bent over some old family photos. Kris groans, pressing his hand to his forehead.

“Mom,” he sighs. “Did you have to?” 

“Adam wanted to see what you were like when you were a kid,” Kimberly says defensively. Adam looks up, eyes bright. 

“Is this you with the violin?” he asks excitedly, pointing at a photo. Kris comes over to join them and bends to look at it. 

It is, though he’s not carrying a violin. “It’s a viola, actually,” Kris says. “We didn’t have enough in the orchestra, so Ms. Levi asked me to play it.” 

“It’s almost as big as your torso!” Adam exclaims delightedly. “You were an awfully cute kid, you know.” 

Kimberly gets up then and says, “I’ll go help Neil with dinner. You two have fun.” Kris takes her place on the sofa, trying not to think about what he and Adam had been doing there not more than an hour ago.

“I know,” Adam says in an undertone when he sees Kris’s expression. “I tried to get her to sit somewhere else, but no dice.” 

“God,” Kris moans, leaning against Adam, who puts an arm around his shoulders comfortingly. “This is crazy. They already knew about us, you know.” 

“Your mom mentioned,” Adam says with a smile. “The people in this town are awfully gossipy, aren’t they?”

“We need to pass the time somehow,” Kris says. He reaches out and closes the photo album. “You can only look at these if I get to see your childhood photos.” 

“That is _never_ going to happen,” Adam says definitely. “I was a fat child. And I had blond hair.” 

“You had _blond_ hair?” Kris asks, delighted. “Seriously?” 

Adam covers his face and groans. “I know, it was awful.” 

“I bet you still looked good,” Kris says reassuringly, wrapping his arm around Adam’s waist. Adam turns and presses a kiss to Kris’s temple. 

“Thanks,” Adam murmurs. “I didn’t, but I appreciate you saying that.”

“I was supposed to gather you for dinner,” Kris says after a moment. “You fine with fajitas?”

“Definitely,” Adam assures him, pulling him up. “Your parents are okay with all this?” 

“They seem to be,” Kris says. “And I’m sure they are. They’re not judgmental. I’m sorry I didn’t tell them before, I know that must be awful for you. I swear you aren’t my dirty little secret.” 

Adam smiles and squeezes Kris’s shoulder. “I know. Don’t worry, I’m not upset.” 

“I’m still sorry,” Kris says stubbornly, trailing after Adam as Adam heads for the dining room. Neil is setting out the plates as they come in as Kimberly sets out the food. Adam hesitates, but Kris heads for his usual seat and gestures for Adam to take the seat next to him. 

“It smells delicious,” Adam says sincerely to Neil and Kimberly, his eyes wide. Kris wants to laugh at how earnest Adam’s being, but he knows that Adam’s also being incredibly sincere. 

“Thank you, Adam,” Neil says, sitting down. “So how did you and Kris meet?” 

“He’s teaching me to play guitar,” Adam explains. Kris tries not to get embarrassed as his parents proceed to subtly grill Adam for information. Adam, for his part, is incredibly good-natured about the whole thing. 

“I’m Jewish, actually,” he says when religion comes up. “Though not all that seriously.” 

And then, “Yes,” Adam says to a question about his sexuality, “my parents are very supportive.” 

And, “Uh, I don’t know what I want to do after college,” Adam admits, flushing a little.

“Ma, Dad,” Kris says finally, breaking in. “Let Adam eat, okay?” 

“Look, sweetie, we just want to know your boyfriend better,” Kimberly says, a devilish grin on her face. “We’ve known Katy since she was a wee babe, but Adam’s new.” 

“You don’t need to find everything out in one night,” Kris points out. Adam laughs and reaches out to squeeze Kris’s neck, his thumb sweeping over Kris’s collarbone. 

When dinner is over, Kris escapes with Adam and says, “I am so sorry about them.” 

“It’s cute,” Adam protests. “They just love you a lot.” 

Kris rolls his eyes. “Yeah, I know, but they didn’t need to ask you all that.” 

“Hey, Kris,” Adam says, coming closer and closing his hands around Kris’s upper arms. “Don’t worry about it. They’re not gonna scare me off.” Kris relaxes, feeling soothed. 

Kris wishes, suddenly, that he had more to offer Adam. Surely, Adam deserves someone who understands what the fuck he’s doing, not someone who’s making it up as he goes along. Kris shakes his head to clear it and then nods. “I know.” 

Adam bends to kiss Kris, quick and sweet. “I’ve gotta get home,” he says. “I’ll see you at school, okay?” 

“Yeah, sure,” Kris nods and he kisses Adam briefly before stepping away to let Adam get his guitar. “Thanks for putting up with all this.” 

Adam flashes him a smile as he picks up his guitar. Kris follows him to the front door and waves as Adam gets in his car. He watches until the car has disappeared around the corner of the block and then he goes back inside, shaking his head how cliché he is.

“He seems nice,” Kimberly remarks when Kris returns to the kitchen to help them clean up. “And you like him.”

“Yeah,” Kris admits. “I’m glad you approve.” 

Kimberly smiles and says, “I hope you two are at least using condoms.” 

“Mom!” Kris exclaims, scandalized and horribly, horribly embarrassed. “Please do not have this conversation with me!” 

“Sweetheart, pregnancy may not be a concern,” Kimberly continues serenely, “but it never hurts to be safe.” 

“Oh god,” Kris moans, burying his face in his hands. “I’m going to my room, good night.” He heads upstairs and barricades himself in his room, where he jumps around a little out of an equal mix of excitement and embarrassment. 

By the next morning, Kimberly has somehow befriended Adam’s mom and after they go to church, Kimberly insists that they swing by the Lamberts’ house, where they are greeted by a woman who identifies herself as Leila and a boy a couple of years younger than Kris. 

“Adam’s still asleep,” Leila says apologetically as she lets them in. 

Kimberly waves her hand dismissively. “Oh, don’t worry about that, we just wanted to drop off a welcome-to-the-neighborhood gift.” She holds out a pie she’d baked the night before. Leila tries to fend it off, but no one can deter Kimberly Allen when she decides to be friendly. 

“Thank you,” Leila says finally, accepting it and giving it to the boy – Neil, Kris realizes, it must be Adam’s younger brother Neil – before leading them into the living room. 

Kris’s dad mostly stays quiet while the moms gossip until Neil wanders in and then they start talking about sports, with little Neil rooting for the Lakers and big Neil for the Clippers, apparently just to be contrary. 

Adam appears about twenty minutes later, looking rumpled and tired, still dressed in his sleeping clothes – a pair of grey sweatpants and a black shirt. He looks ridiculously good, his eyes wide and very blue. 

“Kris,” he says, startled. “Hi.” 

Kris waves weakly back. “Hey.” 

“Why don’t you stay for lunch?” Kris hears Leila ask Kris’s mom, who accepts. Kris and Adam exchange doomed looks and Adam treks back upstairs to get dressed. 

Lunch is spent with the Lamberts and the Allens exchanging embarrassing stories about Adam and Kris while Adam and Kris make faces at each other. Little Neil has some particularly interesting stories, including one that ends with, “And then we decided that Adam is actually a glittery alien from the Planet Fierce, dropped into our family to bring awesome to the world.” 

“Oh my god, _Neil_ ,” Adam groans, burying his face in his hands. Little Neil laughs, slightly demonically, grinning at his older brother with the bratty smile of all younger siblings (Kris knows, he used to be that annoying younger sibling).

Adam and Kris escape upstairs after lunch and the first thing out of Kris’s mouth is, “I am so sorry.” 

“It’s not like you weren’t equally embarrassed,” Adam says dismissively, smiling reassuringly. “Moms like to gossip, it’s the way of the world.” 

“Still. We kind of ambushed you in your own home.” Kris rubs the back of his neck, ducking his head. Adam’s hand settles on Kris’s back, right between his shoulder blades and Kris freezes. 

“Relax,” Adam says and he’s suddenly crowded up close against Kris’s back, his breath ghosting along the skin at the nape of Kris’s neck. Kris takes a breath and lets it out slowly, letting the tension leak out of his shoulders. Adam makes a satisfied noise and places a kiss to the side of Kris’s neck. “Relax,” he repeats, voice cajoling, and Kris melts back into Adam’s arms, eyelids dropping unconsciously.

Adam makes a purring sound and wraps his arms around Kris’s waist, pulling Kris back against his chest. Adam’s warm, even through his shirt, and Kris closes his eyes. Adam bites lightly at Kris’s ear and Kris shudders, hard. He moves a hand up to Kris’s neck and Kris dips his head, waiting for – something. 

“Adam!” shouts little Neil and Adam releases Kris quickly as little Neil comes tearing upstairs. Neil grins at them cheekily and asks, “Did I interrupt?”

“Fuck off,” Adam says comfortably. He leans in and presses a quick kiss to Kris’s temple, not caring that Neil is looking. “See you tomorrow.” 

Kris looks up at Adam, who’s looking a little…surprised isn’t exactly the right word, but. Surprised. Like he had been just as confused as Kris by the way Kris had just obeyed him. 

“Yeah,” Kris says after a moment. “Tomorrow.”

On Monday, Katy takes one look at Kris’s face and squeals, “Oh my god!” She grabs his arm and tugs him aside. “What _happened_?”

“I need to go to my locker,” Kris points out, gently tugging at his arm. “And we’re kind of in public?”

“Kris, I recognize that look on your face,” Katy hisses as she follows him to his locker. “You got laid! That’s really exciting, sweetie!”

“Not laid, exactly,” Kris hedges. “But yeah.” He points at her and says, “And don’t you dare tell anyone, even Megan.”

Katy squeaks and throws her arms around his shoulders. “Kris! You’re gonna have to spill later, okay?”

He waves her off and gets the stuff out of his locker before heading to class. Adam is already there, dressed a little more sedately than usual. He beams at Kris and Kris gets a little shiver, which takes him by surprise. Kris nods and looks down, trying to figure out what the hell’s going on.

He goes through the rest of the day somewhat mechanically, going over every little bit of his interactions with Adam. He comes to a sort of unsteady conclusion, which is only enforced when Adam settles his hand on the back of Kris’s neck during lunch and Kris automatically drops his head in submission, waiting for Adam to speak. His stomach twists oddly and he avoids Katy’s eyes, feeling awkward.

“So,” Katy says when they get their coffees after school. “Spill.”

Kris does, without going into graphic detail, and Katy nearly knocks over her drink as she waves her hand excitedly.

“That’s _awesome_ , Kris. I’m so happy your parents are good with it.” Kris nods and stirs at his coffee thoughtfully. Katy tilts her head to the side and queries, “What’s up? You’re not telling me something.”

“I’m afraid we’re going to be bad at sex,” Kris admits. “Like, really bad. Neither of us has any idea what we’re doing.”

“And _we_ did?” Katy asks incredulously.

“Well, no,” Kris says, “but it was fairly straightforward.” He presses a hand to his face in embarrassment. “I think Adam might be into…well.”

“What?” Katy asks in a hushed voice, eyes wide.

“I think he might into, uh, kinky stuff? Like, um. Control stuff,” Kris admits in an undertone. Katy’s eyes widen and she covers her mouth with her hand.

“And you?” she inquires. “Do you, uh. Are you okay with it?”

“Actually, yes,” Kris confesses. Katy’s eyebrows shoot upwards in surprise. “I just have _no idea_ what we’re doing. Like. I don’t even know.”

Katy pats his hand sympathetically. “Do you think you should ask someone for help?”

Kris shrugs. “I think Adam deserves someone who gets this stuff, really.”

“I don’t think he wants someone else,” Katy points out carefully. “I’m pretty sure he just wants you.”

Kris sighs. “I want him to give him what he _needs_ , Katy.”

“I get it, sweetheart,” Katy says sympathetically, reaching out to pat his wrist. “But you have to keep in mind that what you think he needs might not be what he thinks he needs.” She sips at her drink thoughtfully. “Are you going to talk to him about it?”

“Probably,” Kris says. “I just – I don’t even know what to say to him. ‘Hey Adam, I think you might be into controlling me and I think I might be okay with that?’”

“I wouldn’t phrase it exactly like that,” Katy hedges, “but hey, whatever works.”

Kris groans and drops his head into his hands. “Shit.”  


  
*****

  
He doesn’t really know how to broach the topic with Adam, so he does a little bit of internet research with safe search on. He’s pretty sure they fit the description, but he’s not totally sure and he doesn’t exactly know who to ask. Adam, at the very least, seems like he might be a dominant person, and Kris is not sure how to deal with that, if he really is comfortable with it like he had claimed to Katy.

He heads to school the next day in a thoughtful mood which is promptly ruined when Brad pops up out of nowhere.

“Kristopher, you need to come with me,” Brad says imperiously.

Kris blinks at him. “Uh. What?”

Brad grabs Kris’s arm and tows him into the boys’ bathroom. There are a couple of guys in there, but they scatter at Brad’s glare. Brad shuts the door and locks it. Kris looks around for anything he might be able to defend himself with if Brad attacks him, but everything is bolted down.

“Kristopher Allen,” Brad says ominously, crossing his skinny arms and glaring.

Kris waits, but nothing else seems forthcoming. Brad just glares at him and Kris gets more and more uncomfortable until he finally demands, “What?”

“Kristopher,” Brad says again. “We need to talk about Adam.”

“What about Adam?” Kris asks tiredly.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Brad says acidly, “but Adam is a very special boy with very special desires, from what he has told me.”

“Oh,” Kris says resignedly. “That.”

Brad eyes him suspiciously. “Hmmph.” He unfolds his arms and prods Kris in the chest. “Look, Kristopher, Adam has certain…needs. He needs someone who understands those needs. Capisce?”

Kris blinks at him slowly, not entirely sure what was going on. “Oh…kay?” he says hesitantly. “I guess?”

Brad stares at him for a long moment before nodding. “Fine. Good.” He points at Kris. “I’m keeping an eye on you, Kristopher Allen.” He turns sharply on his heel and leaves the bathroom, the door slamming shut behind him.

“…the hell?” Kris asks the empty bathroom.

He just barely makes it to class on time, sliding into his seat as the bell rings. Adam frowns at him, looking concerned, but Mr. Cowell calls the class to attention before he can say anything. Kris swallows and tries to figure out what the hell Brad had been trying to say.

It’s Adam’s day to sit with the drama kids, and Kris watches as he slides his tray in next to Drake, who scoots over to give him room.

Adam seems to be really good friends with Drake. Drake is actually really cool, though he seems to have an aversion to sleeves and wears really ugly clothes sometimes (read: all the time). It’s just – well, Drake _knows_ about the things that Kris is only just beginning to feel out for himself. Last year, Drake had dated this guy in college and had shown up at school with bruises on his wrists. When Kris had asked him, hesitantly, if he was all right, Drake had laughed and patted Kris’s shoulder pityingly.

“Believe me, Kristopher,” he’d said (and Kris would _really_ like to know what’s up with the drama kids’ preoccupation with calling him by his full name), “he didn’t do anything I didn’t want him to.”

Kris sighs and pokes at his lunch while Anoop and Megan bicker over something inconsequential. Allison nudges at Kris’s shoulder and says, “Hey, you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Kris says, only sort of lying. “Just thinking.”

Allison widens her eyes and on her other side, Katy raises her eyebrows at Kris. He goes back to poking at his lunch somewhat morosely until the bell rings.

For the rest of the week, he can’t stop himself from noticing every time Adam talks to Drake, the way Drake ducks his head instantly and looks up at Adam through his lashes.

“How can I compete with _that_?” he complains to Katy as she waits for him by his locker. “Drake can actually do all the things that Adam needs and I’m just…fumbling around.”

“You need to stop underselling yourself and talk to him,” Katy says briskly. She falls into step beside him as Kris starts for class. Brad gives him a slightly frightening look as they pass and Kris shivers. “What?”

Kris sighs and, in an undertone, briefly relates what Brad had said to him. Katy blinks in surprise and says, “Is he trying to tell you to break up with Adam?”

“I don’t know!” Kris says in exasperation. “Adam and I never even really _said_ we were dating, though I guess we are?”

“Honey, you’re dating.” She wraps her arm around his shoulders and gives him a quick hug. “Listen, just _talk_ to Adam and see if you can figure things out. Just letting things lie isn’t good for anyone.”

Kris nods. “Yeah, okay. I’ll talk to him.” They swing into class, Katy’s arm still around Kris’s shoulder and Adam gets a weird expression on his face for a moment before Katy drops her arm and sits down.

“Hey,” Kris says to Adam and Adam smiles, but it looks a little forced.

“Hi,” Adam says. “I haven’t talked to you much this week.”

“I’ve been thinking a lot,” Kris explains, knowing it’s really kind of a cop out of an excuse. “Sorry.”

Adam doesn’t say anything for a long moment, but then he nods and says, “Don’t worry about it. Are we still on for our lesson on Saturday?”

“Yeah, of course,” Kris says. “Why, did something come up?”

Adam shakes his head. “Just checking.”

Kris looks at him for a minute, confused, then turns to face the front of the classroom. Katy throws him a note as Mr. Cowell begins going over the announcements.

 _Talk to him!!_ the note says. Kris sighs and crumples it up.  


  
*****

  
On Saturday, Adam shows up to Kris’s house at the usual time, guitar in hand. He greets Kris with a quick kiss to the corner of his mouth before heading to the living room.

They work for about an hour before they wind down, with Kris just showing off a little while Adam watches his hands with rapt attention. Kris winds down a little and decides that he should try to talk to Adam. He gropes for a way to open.

“You’ve been hanging out with Drake a lot,” Kris remarks after a long moment of consideration. Adam nods, smiling.

“He’s a nice guy,” he says. “Smart, too.”

Kris strums at his guitar absently, trying to figure out how to phrase his next part. “I know Drake knows a lot about some stuff,” he says carefully, and he knows Adam gets it when Adam looks up sharply. “It would be okay with me if you and him were…experimenting.”

Adam’s face suddenly darkens and he asks, “What are you talking about?”

“You know, I just – I don’t think I’m the ideal guy for this,” Kris says, his left hand tightening around the neck of the guitar. “I just – I don’t even…”

“Kris, what?” demands Adam, frowning.

“I’ve been thinking about this and Katy said that I should talk to you,” Kris says, setting his guitar aside, and Adam gets this weird, pinched look on his face.

“Oh, _Katy_ says,” Adam says, a little acidly, and Kris blinks at him. “You’ve been spending so much time with _Katy_ lately.”

“We broke up,” Kris says blankly, staring at him. “Long before you got here.”

“That’s the point, isn’t it,” Adam snaps. “She’s been here long before me.”

“This _isn’t_ the point, Adam!” Kris exclaims. “I’m not cheating on you with Katy!”

“And I’m not cheating on _you_ with _Drake_!” Adam yells, throwing his hands up.

“I didn’t say you were, I said I wouldn’t mind if you wanted to experiment with him!” Kris shouts, finally losing it just a little. He’s totally lying, too; he doesn’t want to see Adam with Drake, but maybe if he gives his permission, he’ll adjust to it.

“Why the fuck would I want to do that?” demands Adam, narrowing his eyes. “So you don’t have to feel guilty when you go back to your ex-girlfriend?”

“Dammit, Adam, I’m trying to do something _nice_ here,” Kris grits out. “Drake knows what you need, he can help you out –”

“Oh, stop acting like this is all for my benefit, _Kristopher Allen_ ,” Adam spits out, terrifying in his anger. “You can just fuck off. I don’t fuck around, okay? And I’m not going to start now. But since you’re so determined to get rid of me, fine. See you around.”

He picks up his guitar and stalks out of the room and Kris hears the front door slam a moment later. He sinks down on the couch and says feelingly, “ _Fuck_.”  


  
*****

  
“You did _what_?” Katy shouts over the phone at him. “Are you touched in the head? Couldn’t you think of a better way of phrasing it?”

Kris winces and pulls the phone away from his ear. After about half a minute, he hazards bringing the phone back towards his face.

“- God knows why I ever thought you were –”

“Katy,” Kris says, then louder, “Katy!”

She falls silent with a huff. Kris takes a deep breath and says, “I know it was stupid, I just – didn’t know what else to say.”

“You’re an idiot,” Katy pronounces. “And you need to apologize to Adam.”

“I know,” Kris agrees. “I’ll do it on Monday.”

Except that Adam starts avoiding him on Monday, taking a seat as far away from Kris as possible in the classes they share. Every time Kris tries to go up to him, Brad or Cassidy or Alisan appears and blocks his way.

“He’s definitely avoiding me,” he tells Katy during lunch. They have secluded themselves somewhat from everyone else, crammed down at the end of the table away from the others. Katy is obviously holding herself back from shouting at him in the middle of the cafeteria, for which Kris is eternally grateful. “But maybe I can catch him during the talent show meeting.”

“Well, aren’t you just telling them what stuff you need?” Katy tilts her head to the side and asks, “So what are you singing, anyway?”  


  
*****

  
Kris is not making a statement. Really. Except for how he definitely is. “'All These Things That I’ve Done', originally by The Killers. And I need a backing band, though I can play rhythm guitar,” he tells Michael, the head of the stage crew. “Drums, guitar, bass. And a mic for me.”

Michael marks that down and nods. “Break a leg, Kris.” He throws Kris a lazy salute; Michael’s in the men’s choir, so he’s probably rooting for the choir kids.

Kris is about to leave when he thinks to ask, “Hey, has Adam Lambert been by yet?”

Michael flips through the papers on his clipboard for a moment, then nods. “Yeah, he came by right after school ended.”

“Oh.” Kris frowns. “Thanks.” He heads outside where Katy’s waiting and shakes his head. “No dice.”

“Dammit.” Katy eyes him thoughtfully. “What are you playing?”

Kris makes a face and tries to sidle away, but Katy knows his ways. She catches him before he has a chance to run away. “Uh,” Kris says, “it’s a Killers song.”

“Which Killers song?” she asks suspiciously, staring him down.

He shifts, not looking her in the face and mutters, “All These Things That I’ve Done.”

“Well,” Katy says after a moment. “That should send a message.”

“I just hope he gets it,” Kris mutters, wrapping his arms around himself. Katy sighs and pecks him on the cheek.

“Break a leg, sweetie,” she tells him.  


  
*****

  
The first round of the talent show is Wednesday night and Kris is jittering with nerves all day. He always feels bad for the house bands, who have to be really good and not fuck up the person they’re backing, _and_ they have to learn like five or six songs a piece. It’s helpful, he guesses, that people who perform original work mostly either a) play alone or b) have their own band.

Cale, who’s playing backing guitar, tells Kris, “Man, don’t worry. We’re used to this.” He slings his guitar on and heads onstage.

Kris is performing fifteenth, three after Adam. He’s waiting backstage when he hears Adam’s song start. He recognizes it right away; it’s U2’s _One_ and Adam is putting emphasis on certain phrases in a way that Kris is _sure_ isn’t accidental.

“ _One_ love,” Adam sings and Kris flinches, because he knows Adam knows he’s listening.

Kris wipes his sweaty hands on his legs and picks up his guitar before going to wait in the wings. Adam goes off the other side of the stage, looking incredibly gorgeous in a pair of leather pants and a black shirt. Kris plucks at his plaid shirt resignedly, then heads out on stage and says, “Hello, I’m Kris Allen. This is a song by The Killers.”  


  
*****

  
Kris and Adam both get through the first round. So do Scott, Allison, Danny, Alisan, Brad, and about eighteen other people. Kris gets congratulated about, oh, a thousand times on his performance, and he gets a lot of knowing looks from the girls and some of the more perceptive guys.

Brad gives Kris a strange look when they pass in the hall the next day and Adam seems – well, not as cold as he had before, but he’s still ignoring Kris and it’s a little – painful. Kris tries to corner him, but Adam is slippery and determined to avoid him.

Instead, Kris seeks out the talent show crew and tells them what his next song is going to be. He is sure that Adam is going to respond in some way, so he picks a song that fits with what he’s trying to say.

Adam seems determined to rub Kris’s mistake in his face, because his next song is “If I Can’t Have You,” and he sings, “Then I don’t want nobody, baby,” with a certain emphatic panache.

Kris goes with “Apologize,” which after he performs it seems like not such a great idea. “Maybe he thinks I’m saying I’m done with him,” he says to Katy worriedly after the end of the show.

Katy rolls her eyes at him. “Were you dropped on the head as a child?” she demands and she smacks him upside the head.

Adam and Kris both pass on to the next round.  


  
*****

  
“This is a song by The Beatles,” Kris announces to the auditorium. “I want to see your hands up, get your cell phones out.” He strums his guitar once, then begins, “Hey Jude…”

Out in the audience, he can see the sea of cell phones waving back and forth like phosphorescent flowers. He closes his eyes briefly, feeling their energy and excitement pulsing through them. He has never been that much of a showman, but he thinks he understands what performers mean when they talk about feeling the crowd.

Adam is on a little after him. (Kris isn’t sure what the ordering signifies; it has something to do with the scoring system, but he doesn’t pay attention to it that much. He knows he’ll just get stressed out if he thinks about how the judges are scoring them.)

He stands off in the wings while Adam sings, “So take a good look at my face, you’ll see my smile looks out of place,” and tries not to hate himself too much.  


  
*****

  
Brad yanks Kris into the bathroom again shortly before fourth period the next day, shoving him into the corner and shooing out the other guys in the bathroom. Brad crosses his arms and stares at Kris for a long moment.

“So you’re an idiot,” Brad informs Kris flatly. “Like, you are legitimately an idiot.”

“What?” Kris says. “I mean, _I_ know that, but why do _you_ know that?”

Brad doesn’t actually answer him, just says, “If you were freaked out, if you wanted to break up with Adam, you should have just had the balls to say it.”

“Excuse me?” Kris asks, disbelieving and a little defensive. “He told you about that? And – I didn’t want to break up with Adam. He – he just deserves the chance at something better.”

“Hell yeah he does,” Brad agrees, scowling. “Because you are an _idiot_.”

“Hey, he’s the one that said we should break up,” Kris points out, a hot rush of embarrassment rising to his cheeks. “All I said was that maybe he should talk to someone who understands the whole BDSM thing, because I don’t and he – I don’t know, he deserves someone who gets it.”

Brad stares at him for a long moment, then asks, “Were you dropped on the head as a child?”

“I don’t think so?” Kris replies, though he of course is not really sure. His mom definitely wouldn’t have told him. “Why?”

“Because he doesn’t _want_ someone who _gets it_ , he wants _you_!” Brad leans forward and whacks Kris upside the head. “I can’t pretend that I even _begin_ to understand it, but you need to make things right with him because he is _driving me nuts_.”

“I can’t believe he told you all that stuff,” Kris mutters, scuffing his foot against the tile floor.

Brad huffs out a long-suffering sigh and says, “Fine, don’t listen to me. Goodbye, Kristopher.” He shoulder-checks Kris as he leaves the bathroom, muttering under his breath. Kris blinks after him, then goes to class, thinking.  


  
*****

  
“You really think this is a good idea for a song?” Katy asks him worriedly before he goes backstage. “Like, it’s kind of – harsh.”

Kris shrugs helplessly. “I don’t know,” he says pathetically. “I wanted to sing it anyway, I’m not really trying to be mean.”

Katy claps him on the shoulder and says, “Well, good luck.”

Kris nods, takes a deep breath, and heads backstage. He slips the guitar on over his head and waits in the wings while the other students perform. When Alisan leaves the stage, giving him a death glare as she passes, he steps out into the spotlight, just him and his guitar, and starts, “In the night, I hear ‘em talk.”

He gets a huge applause after he’s done, and he’s grinning stupidly as he stumbles offstage. An arm shoots out of the shadows and grabs his upper arm. Adam drags him in, eyes narrowed, and demands, “What the hell was that?”

Kris yanks his arm out of Adam’s grip and says, “A _song_ , Adam. Not everything has some deeper meaning behind it.” He regrets his tone immediately and bits his lip nervously.

Adam stares at him apprehensively, then steps back. “Fine,” he says shortly. “Sorry to bother you.” He turns on his heel and stalks towards the stage.

“Adam,” Kris calls, hopelessly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be so rude.”

“Whatever, Kris,” Adam snaps, not looking back, and he shakes himself off before stepping onstage to huge applause. “This is a song by Led Zeppelin,” he says into the mic and he starts. Kris stares from the wings, watching the way Adam commands the entire stage with the sheer force of his personality. When Adam stalks over to Tommy on the line, “Gonna give you every inch of my love,” Kris swallows hard and steps away from the stage so he doesn’t have to watch Adam rub his hand down Tommy’s chest.

The judges announce the results after Adam’s performance is over; Adam and Kris are in the finals.  


  
*****

  
Kris grabs Adam before class the next day and says, “Adam, really. I am so sorry.”

“For what?” sneers Adam, but there seems to be an edge of vulnerability underneath. “For calling me a slut or for calling me heartless?”

“I didn’t mean to say you’re – a slut,” Kris says pleadingly. “Adam, I really honestly didn’t. I just – look, I don’t know anything about BDSM stuff and you clearly need someone who gets it –”

“What do you mean by _that_?” demands Adam, frowning.

“Just that you deserve someone who knows what they’re doing!” explodes Kris. “Your first boyfriend should be able to make things special for you, not be all bumbling and stupid about everything. Someone who knows that you’re supposed to have – have, I don’t know, safe words and aftercare and all this stuff that I don’t understand!”

Adam’s eyes soften, suddenly, and he reaches out to trail a finger down Kris’s cheek. “You’re not stupid,” he says quietly.

“Brad says I’m an idiot,” Kris replies dumbly, feeling breathless and shivery just from the touch of Adam’s finger.

“Well,” Adam admits, “you were kind of dumb about the whole thing. Why didn’t you just talk to me about it?”

“I tried, but then everything came out wrong and then you were mad at me,” Kris explains morosely.

“I don’t exactly get everything, either,” Adam tells him, with a small smile. “I was – I may have overreacted. I can be a drama queen sometimes.”

“Really?” Kris asks dryly and Adam laughs before swatting him across the shoulder playfully.

“Shut up,” he says fondly. They grin at each other for a moment.

“Do you think,” Kris says hesitantly after a pause, “that we could try again? And this time, like, try to talk things out?”

“I’ll have to think about it,” Adam murmurs, looking regretful. “I like you a _lot_ , Kris. I just –”

“Want to make sure it’s the right decision,” Kris finishes for him, nodding. “I get it.” He reaches up and squeezes Adam’s shoulder fondly. “Okay.”

Adam grabs his hand and they stand like that, staring at each other until the bell rings. Adam steps away and shoots a smile at Kris before ducking into the classroom.  


  
*****

  
“So you talked to him,” Katy says during lunch, smiling encouragingly. “Good for you. Are you back together yet?”

“Not yet,” Kris replies. “But I have a plan.”

“Do you now.” Katy arches her eyebrows at him, smiling. “Do tell.”

“Nope, it has to be a surprise for everyone,” Kris informs her. He grins as she groans and drops her head into her hands. “Sorry, Katy.”

“You suck, Kristopher,” she tells him grumpily. “I like to be in on secrets, you know that.”

“Yes, I know,” he tells her, “but this is big. Like, big-big. It’s going to have to be a surprise.”

“How very teen-movie of you,” says Scott, who has been listening in the whole time. He pokes at his salad. “And that makes Katy the sassy best friend.”

“Of course, like I would be anything else,” scoffs Katy dismissively.  


  
*****

  
Kris’s hands are sweating. He wipes his hands on his jeans and takes a deep breath, watching Adam sing “Mad World.” Adam’s voice soars out over the auditorium, clear and pure and totally heart wrenching. It sends shivers down his spine and he compulsively knots his hands in the hem of his shirt.

“I can do this,” he tells himself. A hand lands on his shoulder and he nearly jumps out of his skin. “Jesus.”

“It’s just me,” David Cook says. Because he won the year before, he isn’t allowed to participate this time, but he volunteered to help out backstage. “You’re almost on. You need the piano, right?”

“Yep,” Kris says, watching as Adam takes his bows. “I’m ready.”

“Break a leg,” Cook says, clapping Kris on the shoulder. “I’m sure you’ll do great.”

Kris nods and waits for Adam to finish taking his bows before coming closer to the side of the stage. Adam smiles at Kris as he passes, reaching out to squeeze Kris’s shoulder gently.

“Break a leg, Kris,” Adam says in a low, intimate voice. Kris blinks up at him breathlessly and nods, his stomach fluttering in a way that has nothing to do with nerves.

“Thank you,” he whispers, and then he settles his shoulders before stepping out onstage. He sits down at the grand piano and rubs his hands against his jeans again. “Hi,” he says into the microphone. “I’m Kris Allen and this song is about being without someone you could love.”

He sets his hands on the piano keys and plays the opening chords, then sings, “Ain’t no sunshine when he’s gone.”

He loses track of himself while he’s playing, trying not to think about the fact that he is rather unexpectedly outing himself to the entire school. He finishes and lifts his hands from the keys just as the auditorium bursts into thunderous applause.

He rises to his feet and jerks his head in an awkward bow before hurrying offstage to wait for the judges to rule and the audience to vote (through a complicated system of note passing that shouldn’t work, but does). Adam is waiting for him in the wings, his eyes huge.

“Kris,” he says, his voice rough. “What did you just do?”

Kris half-shrugs, trying a smile. “It’s supposed to be a grand gesture.”

“God, you’re such a freak,” Adam says affectionately, and he reels Kris in before pinning him up against the wall, kissing him so hard that Kris can’t breathe. He hesitates for a second before biting Kris’s lip, then kisses down his jaw and neck, biting lightly as he goes. Kris pants, arching up, and buries his hands in Adam’s ridiculous hair.

“So does this mean I get my second chance?” Kris asks breathlessly and Adam chuckles into his collarbone.

“Yes!” Adam says cheerfully. “You definitely get that second chance.”

“Good,” Kris says and he kisses Adam again. He is seriously considering climbing Adam like a tree when he hears Cook clear his throat.

“Uh, hey guys,” Cook says. “I get that you’re really excited and everything, but they’re about to announce the results and you guys should be onstage for that.”

“Right,” Adam says. He lets Kris go and Kris sinks off his tiptoes. Adam runs his hands through Kris’s hair, setting it straight. “Well, you still look like you’ve just been ravished, but oh well.”

“They can deal,” Kris replies, grinning, and he follows Adam out onstage. Mr. Seacrest is talking to one of the other talent show volunteers while Mr. Cowell and Ms. Abdul chat quietly. Adam grabs at Kris’s hand nervously. Finally, Mr. Seacrest leaps up the steps onto the stage.

“Well!” he exclaims into his microphone. “This is unprecedented, but we actually have a tie! And the judges agree – Adam and Kris are too evenly matched to judge, so we have two winners this year!”

The crowd bursts into excited cheers and Adam claps his hands together before grabbing Kris and pulling him into a deep, very school-inappropriate kiss. Kris hears Katy shout in excitement and the auditorium bursts into fresh shouts.

“And whoa, looks like they are satisfied with that result,” Mr. Seacrest says, laughing. “Okay, boys, you can take it offstage. Boys?”

Adam pulls away for a moment to complain loudly, “You’re ruining the moment, Mr. Seacrest,” and the audience laughs. Kris rolls his eyes good-naturedly and tugs Adam offstage, waving to the audience as they go.

“Let’s go somewhere,” Kris says once they’re out of sight of their schoolmates. “I have my car.”

Adam smirks and says, “Let’s take it out for a spin, then.” He slings a proprietary arm around Kris’s shoulders and noses at his temple gently. “And maybe we can figure things out together.”

“Yes,” Kris breathes, relaxing under Adam’s arm. “Yes, I would like that.”

Adam laughs and leads Kris out into the parking lot, hand low on Kris’s back. Kris dips his head, leans into Adam, and lets him take the lead.


End file.
